Iraq says reconstruction after war on Daesh to cost $88 billion

By Thomson Reuters Foundation – Feb 12,2018 – JORDAN TIMES

Participants walk past brochures of previous funds collected by the International Islamic Relief Organisation (IIRO), during the Kuwait International Conference for Reconstruction of Iraq on Monday, in Kuwait City (AFP photo)

KUWAIT — Rebuilding Iraq after three years of war with Daesh will cost more than $88 billion, with housing a particularly urgent priority, Iraqi officials told an international donors’ conference on Monday.

Donors and investors have gathered in Kuwait this week to discuss efforts to rebuild Iraq’s economy and infrastructure as it emerges from a devastating conflict with the hardline militants, who seized almost a third of the country.

Iraq declared victory over Daesh in December, having taken back all the territory captured by the militants in 2014 and 2015. The fighters have also been largely defeated in neighbouring Syria.

About $23 billion will be needed in the short term and more than $65 billion in the medium term, the director general of Iraq’s planning ministry, Qusay Adulfattah, told the conference.

“Rebuilding Iraq is restoring hope to Iraq, and restoring the stability of Iraq is stabilising the states of the region and the world,” said Planning Minister Salman Al Jumaili.

The seven provinces attacked by the militants suffered $46 billion in direct damage, including the destruction of 147,000 housing units, and the security forces took $14 billion in losses. Tens of billions more were lost indirectly through damage to the wider economy and years of lost growth, the planning ministry said.

Iraq has published a list of some 157 projects for which it is seeking investment.

They include rebuilding destroyed facilities such as Mosul airport and new investments to diversify the economy away from crude oil sales, developing transport, agriculture and oil-related industry including petrochemicals and refining.

Rebuilding homes, hospitals, schools, roads, businesses and telecommunications will be key to providing jobs for the young, ending the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people and putting an end to decades of political and sectarian violence.

Gains at risk

Nations could help by acting as guarantors with lenders, allowing Iraq to take out soft loans to fund infrastructure projects, Mahdi Al Alaq, secretary general of Iraq’s Council of Ministers, told the conference.

US officials said the United States, which occupied Iraq from 2003-2011 and now leads an international coalition that provided air support against Daesh, does not plan to pledge funds at the Kuwait conference.

Lise Grande, UN humanitarian coordinator for Iraq, said failure to help Iraq could lead to renewed instability.

“If the international community doesn’t help the government of Iraq to stabilise these areas [devastated by the war] the gains against Daesh could be at risk,” she said.

Baghdad has said it is determined to tackle the red tape and corruption that hamper investment. Iraq is viewed by investors as the 10th most corrupt country in the world, according to Transparency International.

Iraq reopened to foreign investment after 2003, with most spent on increasing its oil and natural gas production.

Iraq has suffered from decades of war. It fought Iran for most of the 1980s and invaded Kuwait in 1990, leading to defeat by a US-led coalition and more than a decade of sanctions. A US-led invasion in 2003 toppled dictator Saddam Hussein and was followed by years of occupation, insurgency and sectarian and ethnic conflict, before Daesh emerged in 2014.

It is obvious that the extremist Muslim ( ISIS ) has brought disaster on people of Iraq, very sad. Whom we should be blamed?
If we read news from Middle East they say, destruction of Irag’s cities because of USA. They blamed USA, instead of the extremist Muslim ( ISIS, Al Qaida).

Whereas God’s has warning in Bible:
The extremist deceive his followers and bring disaster on them and misery of life. Proverb.

For our next generation sake, let us fight together the extremist Islamic ideology otherwise they will come back to destroy our cities.
May God give us the trength to fight the extremist Islamic ideology. Amen
All ❤️

I have seen the destruction that the USA has brought to Iraq. Yes, ISIS have continued the destruction, but the infrastructure of Iraq was well destroyed already before the arrival – birth of ISIS. The city of Fallujah for instance was destroyed by the USA about 80%. Babies are born since with deformities because of the use of nuclear-lead ammunition. Therefore, let’s be fair and blame both, not only one.

The root of these conflict in the world after 9/11 is the extremist wahhabi. There is doubt about it.

Wahhabi teach Muslim as below: please reflect..

Wahhabism considers the Western world and people from other religions Jahiliya (ignorant) and believes that fighting against them will lead one to Allah (God) because, according to Wahhabism, only Islamic law can ensure a just society.=

Conversely Doctrine American as follow:
If your enemy hungry give them bread— if they are thirsthy give them warter to drink— love your neighbor as you love your self=

A result of the extremist wahhabi doctrine; they attacked and killed 3000 innocent people—USA retaliated the extremist Muslim every where in this world. Its duty do not finish yet — there are millions Extremist Muslim who persecute Ahmadiyyah in Pakistan, Africa, Indonesia and Saudi / Iran as well.

It is not Ahmadiyyah who blames USA for anything, please note! It is Rafiq, who has been in Iraq and seen how the USA has destroyed the country. In order to catch Saddam Hussain, did they need to destroy schools, hospitals, electricity supply, water distribution networks? – You have a closed mind and seem to not follow the News. ‘If you hungry give them bread’, well the US Government is spending all its funds on wars and cutting funds for feeding the poor. Try to see some News, may be not Fox News … try non-US news if US news does not tell you.

About ‘give them water to drink’, yes, a Lady in the US Embassy in Baghdad told me ‘they do not even accept water from us’. Well, you destroy their houses and then give them a couple of bottles of water! This is reality, what you say is ‘theory of the church sermons’ (wonder which church you got that from, Pentecostal?)